Behind the Scenes at '60 Minutes': Bari Weiss Allowed Netanyahu to Chose His Interviewer, Sparking Massive Feud
An internal revolt has struck CBS News after Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss reportedly bypassed the 60 Minutes team to hand a high-stakes interview with PM Netanyahu to Major Garrett.
A backstage power struggle has erupted at CBS News after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was given an unusual degree of control over the terms of his 60 Minutes interview, fueling anger inside one of America's most storied newsrooms.
CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss allowed Netanyahu to choose between veteran 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl and CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent Major Garrett. Netanyahu's office picked Garrett.
The decision blindsided Stahl and the 60 Minutes team. Stahl, a longtime correspondent, had been pursuing an on-camera sit-down with Netanyahu for months, only to be "upstaged" when Weiss personally arranged the booking and handed it to Garrett, who is not a 60 Minutes correspondent. Newsroom staffers felt that Weiss had "effectively gone around" Stahl and the rest of the 60 Minutes team.
Stahl is reportedly so disillusioned by the handling of the interview that she is now considering leaving the show altogether. The 84-year-old's contract is year-to-year and is set to expire at the end of the current season.
The episode is not an isolated incident. In March, Weiss personally booked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for a CBS News interview and also assigned it to Garrett, directing it to air on 60 Minutes, which was described as highly unusual for a program that typically reserves such decisions for its own correspondents.
An insider told the New York Post that Weiss is pushing to "open up 60 Minutes to the news division," with one source adding: "This is exactly what Bari has been talking about doing, breaking down the silos at 60 Minutes and making clear that the show is no longer an island unto itself."
CBS News did not dispute the reporting. A network spokesperson said in a statement: "It's the editor in chief's job to make decisions about bookings and interviews. Major is a world-class journalist and did a tough, fair, and newsmaking interview."
The interview, which aired Sunday, covered Netanyahu's views on the ongoing conflict with Iran, the prospect of US military aid cuts, and the status of Gaza. CBS posted the full 80-minute conversation online, of which 14 minutes aired on television.